EDITORIAL: Trump's bump stock ban hits the target

By The Enterprise editorial staff

Published
6:00 am CST, Wednesday, February 21, 2018

It came one mass shooting too late, but nevertheless President Trump made the right decision by announcing plans to ban so-called "bump stock" accessories for rifles. Moreover, this is something that hard-core supporters of gun rights can support. Even the National Rifle Association backs it.

Bump stocks were never used by serious shooters. Their jerky action makes it virtually impossible to aim a rifle accurately. Bump stocks were touted as a way for people with impaired hands or physical disabilities to fire a rifle, and perhaps a small number of people use them for that reason.

But they increased the rate for fire for a standard semi-automatic rifle, making it operate more like a fully automatic military weapon. In retrospect, for that reason they never should have been legalized.

Still, many experienced shooters were unaware that bump stocks even existed. All of that changed on Oct. 1, 2017. That's when a sniper in a Las Vegas hotel perch used them to help fire dozens of bullets into a crowd of people gathered below enjoying a concert, killing 58 and wounding dozens of others.

As welcome as this change is, the political irony is inescapable.

It came a week after the ghastly school shooting in Florida, where 17 youths and teachers were killed by a former student. President Trump - and all politicians - were under pressure to do something to prevent these tragedies. Trump apparently has reacted by banning bump stocks, though he could have done that sooner in direct response to the Las Vegas massacre. The Florida shooter did not use a bump stock.

This ban could be defined as gun control, but it will not affect 99 percent of gun owners. Common-sense actions like this must be taken to ensure that guns are used legally and safely.

Most Americans also believe that guns must be kept from dangerous criminals, people with severe mental illnesses or youths outside of activities like supervised hunting or target-shooting.

As a nation, we can't agree on much about guns. But most of us can agree on these things. Our laws should catch up.

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